The National Bureau of Statistics (NBC) in Nigeria has released its latest report on the Information and Communication (ICT) sector for Q1 of 2021. The report reflects recorded growth of 6.47% year-on-year in the first quarter, showing a decrease of 1.18% compared to the same quarter last year.
According to NBC, the sector contributed 14.19% toward Q1 of 2021 GDP, reflecting a higher contribution compared to the same quarter of the previous year but representing 14.07% lower than the second quarter of 2020, which represented 15.06%.
The sector comprises four activities: Telecommunications and Information Services, Publishing, Motion Pictures, Sound Recording and Music Production, and Broadcasting.
NBC has reported that the Information and Communications sector contributed 9.91% total nominal GDP in quarter 1 of 2021, which is lower than quarter 1 of 2020, where it recorder a 10.31% contribution. The report also reflected telecommunications and information services subsector growth of 7.69% in quarter 1 of 2021, showing the highest contributor towards the sector. However, this was still below its previous year contribution of 9.71 for the same quarter last year. The publishing subsector laid at 1.45% in quarter one of 2021, higher than the 0.10% of the same quarter in the previous year.
Motion pictures, sound recording and music production subsector grew by 2.21% in quarter 1 of 2021, decreasing from the 2.51% recorded in quarter 4 of 2020 but higher than the 0.33% of the same quarter last year.
The broadcasting sector grew by 2.45% in quarter 1 of 2021 from 1.81% in the same quarter in 2020. Overall, Nigeria’s economy grew by 0.55% year-on-year in the first quarter, according to the report.
